Mammoth charged like an enraged bull, each step making the ground quake. Ethan moved swiftly, dodging the first punch — the air itself split with a deafening crack, as if the fist were a battering ram.
He countered fast: three sharp, precise strikes — chin, liver, rib. The impacts echoed, but the giant barely flinched. It was like hitting a wall of flesh and steel.
"Damn it…" Ethan thought.
The colossus roared, swinging his arm in a wide arc. Ethan considered dodging, but the blow came too fast. There was no way to escape unscathed. Then he crossed his arms in an X and planted his feet.
The impact was brutal.
The world spun as Mammoth's fist smashed into him, hurling Ethan like a projectile. His body tore through the ground, carving a path in the asphalt of the park.
Before he could catch his breath, a massive shadow loomed over him.
Mammoth leapt.
The earth shook as the giant's legs crashed down, crushing Ethan against the ground. e His chest burned; his bones screamed.
And it didn't stop there.
Mammoth raised his fists and hammered down in a relentless barrage, each strike carving fresh craters, each impact shaking the earth like a colossal sledgehammer.
Ethan blocked as best he could, but the crushing weight drove him deeper and deeper. Blood ran from his forehead, streaking his face. The metallic taste filled his mouth.
He clenched his teeth and his eyes burned with fury.
Amid the storm of blows, his right hand flared with power. The Emperor's Touch expanded, gripping Mammoth's massive body like a puppet.
With a roar, Ethan hurled him skyward.
The giant soared as if struck by an invisible explosion, his hundreds of kilos launched meters into the air.
Panting, Ethan shoved the debris aside and climbed out of the crater. The black trench coat was smeared with dust, blood dripping from his brow and lip.
He looked up at the enemy suspended in the air, and his thoughts sharpened like ice:
"He's slow… but one mistake, and I'm done. And his skin… barely feels my blows. This monster is pure brute force and endurance."
Mammoth's body plummeted back down. Ethan leapt aside at the last second, rolling across the ground as the giant slammed into the earth with a tremor that split the concrete open.
The brute rose effortlessly, rolling his neck as though only warming up. A sadistic grin spread across his face.
Ethan clenched his fists. He couldn't afford hesitation.
He sprinted forward, slipping past the heavy arms that tried to crush him. Ducking beneath a punch, he landed two shots to the ribs and drove an uppercut into Mammoth's jaw with the momentum of his legs. The massive body staggered — but that was all.
Mammoth spat blood onto the ground, laughing."That all you got?"
Ethan, knowing he couldn't retreat now, rushed again, aiming for the giant's face. But Mammoth was faster this time — his massive hand clamped around Ethan's fist. The grip was suffocating, crushing.
— Now it's my turn. — Mammoth sneered.
He lifted Ethan off the ground like a ragdoll and smashed him side to side, every impact tearing chunks of concrete free. Pain screamed through Ethan's back before Mammoth spun and hurled him into the frame of a restaurant. Concrete, wood, and steel collapsed, burying him in wreckage.
The villain walked forward slowly, each step reverberating like a war drum.
" thought you'd be a challenge. But soon, you'll just be another broken toy".
Through the smoke and rubble, a metallic sound rang out. Ethan pushed the wreckage aside, blood streaming from his forehead and lips. Yet his eyes were cold, steady.
— I can't hold back anymore… — he muttered to himself.
The blue screen shimmered before him.
[Inventory open.]
In an instant, two shadow-forged pistols materialized in his hands.
Mammoth's eyes widened, but his grin returned with mocking laughter.— "Little guns? You think toys like that can scratch my skin?"
Ethan spun the weapons with practiced grace, the motion fluid and elegant, before locking into stance. Arms crossed before his chest, the cold barrels aimed directly at the giant.
"Let's find out."
The two locked eyes. Mammoth tightened his fists. Ethan gripped his guns.
Then, both charged. First in long strides, then at full sprint, the ground trembling under their clash.
The giant's right fist came crashing down. Ethan slipped past at the last moment, sliding across the ground in a fluid motion. As he passed the brute's flank, he pulled the trigger. BANG! A shadow bullet buried into Mammoth's thigh.
The colossus roared, swinging again in a wide arc. Ethan flipped backward in a perfect somersault, his coat spreading like black wings. Mid-spin, he fired — BANG! The shot struck his shoulder, staggering him.
Each attack met with an answer.
Slide — shot.
Backflip — shot.
Sidestep — shot.
Mammoth's body was marked with wounds now, blood running in thick lines.
Furious, the giant changed tactics. With a roar, he crouched and leapt, his monstrous form soaring like a meteor toward the young man.
"GOT YOU NOW!" — he bellowed.
Ethan didn't flinch. The invisible force in his hand pulsed, the Emperor's Touch expanding into unseen claws. He seized Mammoth midair and, with brutal strength, hurled him higher still. The giant shot upward, dozens of meters, screaming in rage.
Then Ethan pulled that same energy inward. His body launched like a projectile, surpassing the brute. At the peak, he twisted upside down, the wind howling past, the sky spinning behind.
He spun in a spiral, raising both pistols mid-rotation. Their cold barrels locked onto Mammoth.
His fingers pulled the triggers.
Gunfire roared in succession, each shot painting the sky with ghostly flashes. Spinning through the air, Ethan unleashed a storm of shadow bullets on the helpless titan falling beneath him.
It was like witnessing a deadly dance.A ballet in the sky — with Mammoth at the center of the execution.
The shots echoed like thunder.
TADADADADADADA!
The twin guns screamed like roaring storms, spitting sparks of darkness in a barrage. Each bullet tore through the brute's flesh, driving him down until, finally, Mammoth plummeted like a comet.
The impact was devastating.
BOOOOOOOM!
The ground cracked open in a colossal crater, a curtain of smoke engulfing everything nearby. Ethan fell through the gray haze, coat flaring under the weight of his descent.
As the dust began to settle, the scene unfolded.
Mammoth lay sprawled, chest heaving in ragged gasps, his body shredded with searing wounds. He struggled to move, but it was useless — every muscle screamed in collapse.
And there was Ethan. Standing atop the brute's chest. Pistols crossed, aimed directly at the villain's face. His eyes burned with fury, his chest rising and falling like a beast on the edge of frenzy.
In that moment, there was no doubt: he would pull the trigger.
Then a voice cut through the silence.
"…Ethan?"
Like lightning splitting a storm, his eyes flicked up — still blazing with rage — and there they were.
Sophia. His sister. Her eyes wide in shock. Abel stood beside her. Both stared, horror etched on their faces — not at Mammoth, but at what Ethan was about to do.
Time seemed to stop. His breath faltered. The fury still burned, but now something heavier crushed it: his sister's gaze.
Ethan's hands trembled.The pistols dissolved into fading embers of shadow, vanishing in silence.
He stepped back, eyes drifting from Mammoth. His heart pounded like a drum — not with rage, but with conflict.
And then, an explosion split the air.The sky flared, the park's lights flickering as if devoured by night. Ethan turned, his eyes widening.
Through smoke and sparks, Raven and Dr. Light clashed.
But something was wrong.
The villain had buried his hands into a central pole, drawing energy from the lamps, the cables, the entire park. Electricity coursed through his body like rivers of fire.
And Raven… she was faltering. Her shields cracked, every blast pushing her further back.
Ethan clenched his fist hard.He looked at his sister and Abel, still frozen in place.
"Go back. NOW!" — he roared, his voice like thunder.
Without waiting for an answer, he shot forward toward Raven, his coat unfurling behind him like black wings.
(Continue..)